Innholdsfortegnelse for July 2025 i The Great Outdoors

“But if I never went, how could I come home?”Thursbitch, by Alan Garner ALL OUR OUTDOOR GOINGS are journeys. Which is perhaps why the earliest ones remain so clear in our minds, especially as we grow older and further away. I look back across a gap of well over 60 years to the first time I stood on the summit of Shining Tor. There was so much in that weekend away as an 11-year-old that presaged the future direction of my life. I’d caught the green Salford number 96 bus to Hazel Grove – not many hazel trees in evidence as we cruised along Stockport Road on that long-gone Friday evening – past Ardwick Green and its Apollo Theatre, which was, along with the Free Trade Hall on the other…

Cotopaxi Tarak 20l pack & Kapai 3l hip pack Tarak £100, Kapai £40 Tarak 569g, Kapai 209g well-made, superb fit, good value, 100% recycled. Tarak: back system lacks a little firmness for a climbing-orientated pack, small for intended purpose; Kapai: none Materials: Tarak: 210D ripstop nylon; Kapai: 100% remnant Features: Tarak: hydration sleeve, tool ‘bucket’, plentiful lash points, removable waist belt; Kapai: zip pockets, padded internal sleeve Sizes: one Unisex? yes uk.cotopaxi.com Testing conditions: David used both packs over Winter/Spring 2024-5 for local walks, runs and a little skiing in the Cairngorms National Park, in all weathers. He’s a size Medium with a short back relative to his 5ft 8in height. David Lintern is impressed with the fit and features of this brace of colourful, carbon-neutral packs Continuing in my new…

ENCIRCLED BY the Lorton Fells, hidden within Whinlatter Forest, Spout Force is a bit of an enigma. It has a secretive aura, as if shying away from the limelight, and its wonders are well-guarded by a steep-sided and dramatic gorge. A path leads to a viewing platform, but trees and vegetation block much of the view. So instead – if you’re sure-footed, brave and don’t mind getting wet – you can scramble up a stream and along the ravine to the base of the 30ft plunging waterfall. It’s a wonderful outing with a childlike sense of exploration. Spout Force is only a short walk from Scawgill Bridge, on the B5292 Whinlatter Pass. But to make a day of it, you can combine a visit to the waterfall with a peak-bagging…

WEST BURTON FALLS are handily found right in the Dales village of West Burton. They also go by the more beguiling name of Cauldron Falls. Walden Beck spills over a leafy limestone fault, where unfurled waters decant, translucent, into a capacious pool, and bubbles effervesce and circle the stirring pot. The current gathers beyond a rocky riddle and gushes through a tapering gap, before passing through the arch of a bridge and thrashing through further falls beyond. But is the highlight of the walk over at the beginning? Not if that walk traces the course of the beck back to its origins on Buckden Pike. Its sylvan valley is little visited by folk and lavishly filled with nature. Red kites hang in sheltered air, buzzards soar on thermals and more…

Terry Adby (@terryadbyoutdoors) is an adventure travel writer who believes that what counts is being there, being aware and leaving no trace. He focuses on savouring the natural world whenever he can. His recent trek through the jungles and mountains of Nepal’s enigmatic Kangchenjunga region (page 44) offered plenty of scope for understanding the importance and connectedness of uniquely precious natural environments, and for appreciating the people, fauna and flora that preceded him. Fiona Chappell is a freelance Summer, Winter and International Mountain Leader (ML) who has trekked in France, Spain, Switzerland and Nepal. She currently lives in Aviemore, which is ideal for working in the Cairngorms. She’s looking forward to a Summer of involvement in ML trainings and assessments, with a break to enjoy some trekking and climbing in the Alps.…

ONLY £22.99 FOR YOUR FIRST 6 MONTHS! £5.25 NOW £3.83 PER ISSUE VISIT SHOP.KELSEY.CO.UK/TGO625OR CALL 01959 543747 and quote code TGO625 Scan our QR code – the easiest & quickest way! Hello The Great Outdoors is Britain’s original outdoors magazine, inspiring exploration from sea to summit, valley to mountain top for more than four decades. We’re here to help you make the most of your time outside. Be it with skills advice, ideas for new walks or activities, fresh points of view on nature or breathtaking adventure stories near and far, our focus is on you – the outdoors community. It is a family affair. Our small team works with emerging writers and photographers alongside those with many decades of experience, allowing all to speak in their own voice and…

When it comes to summertime natural highs, you don’t have to seek summits exclusively. For a quick fix of exhilaration, a dunk in a babbling waterfall often does the trick – or perhaps, for you, rambling alongside flowing water simply provides a place to cool your feet on hot days. Thanks to our experts, however, you don’t need to choose between the two. On these seven fine waterfall walks, you’ll be treated to both sweeping hilltop vistas and the awe-inspiring power of water crashing and carving its way through the land as you ascend. Our walks this month 1 Falls of Glomach via Glen Elchaig North-West Highlands 2 Lord’s Seat via Spout Force Lake District 3 Sca Fell via Cam Spout Lake District 4 Bow Fell via Hell Gill Lake District 5 Buckden Pike…

HEADING INTO Upper Eskdale never disappoints. This remote dale head, enclosed by bulwarks of crag, scree and boulders, is unlike anything else in the Lakes – its grey scars forming seemingly insurmountable barriers. Just reaching the Great Moss, the soggy floor of this vast amphitheatre, requires commitment; from here, any attempt to climb England’s highest mountains involves storming those rugged walls. Beyond the Great Moss, this assault on Sca Fell clambers up the side of Cam Spout waterfall before venturing onto pathless terrain north-west of Cam Spout Crag. It’s painstakingly slow going for the next few hundred metres, but the confines of this bowl are finally replaced by a sighting of the sea as you emerge on the high ridge. Scafell Pike, a short distance away across Mickledore, is inevitably…

THE CLASSIC WAY to experience Malham Cove’s colossal crescent of crag is to approach its foundation from Malham village, and marvel at the enveloping limestone enclosure from the base. But this renders its manifestation by degrees. Our way offers no such consideration, unless sauntering down Watlowes dry valley, scarred with cliffs and cave, can coach for a world beheld from the brink of phenomenal limestone pavement perched 80m over Malhamdale. It is rightly held in the highest esteem. There is only one way to escape its compelling spell: to want for more – but that isn’t a problem in this land of limestone lures. Janet’s Foss is an impressive cascade coupled with enchanting pool, behind which the fairy queen Janet resided, just downstream from arguably the national park’s most impressive…

Otley Walking Festival Wharfedale 28 June - 6 July Polish your boots! This popular festival is back, and the programme is packed. With over 40 walks and events – mostly free of charge – across the nine-day event, there is something for everyone. Short town-based routes, meadows and field paths, strenuous moorland hikes and entertaining evening events abound. Otley Walking Festival showcases this historic market town and the wonderful Wharfedale countryside – and boasts a warm welcome from walk leaders. Some walks require booking – so please check the programme carefully to avoid disappointment. Cost: free - £25 ◼ otleywalkingfestival.co.uk The Big Butterfly Count The great outdoors 18 July - 10 August This summer, the charity Butterfly Conservation is calling on wildlife lovers to get out and count butterflies. It…

RIVER ACTION STATIONS The Rivers Trust reckons that only 14% of rivers in England are currently in good ecological health. This map shows where local community groups are changing that story… C'MON IN, THE WATER’S LOVELY Take action yourself and become a river guardian: kit.riveractionuk.com Nature companions: Dippers and sand martins (below) may be found nearby Fieldwork: Learn more about freshwater life via the QR code or at freshwaterhabitats.org.uk WHERE TO SEE: Widespread in rivers and ponds, especially those that are less polluted…

Berghaus partners with biomaterials company Ponda A collaboration between Berghaus and Ponda, a company that develops textiles from regenerative fibres, aims to demonstrate how the textile industry can move beyond extractive materials and adopt solutions that actively restore ecosystems. The first concept garment is a women’s specific jacket insulated with Ponda’s regenerative BioPuff and BioPuff Wadding, sourced and processed entirely in Europe. The jacket has a modular design with removable components to allow the wearer to adjust insulation levels. Berghaus will introduce BioPuff into a range of insulation apparel in Autumn/Winter 2025. berghaus.com/ponda.list All-recycled Fjällräven sleeping bag uses PrimaLoft RISE The new Abisko Three Seasons sleeping bag from Fjällräven is made from 100% recycled material. The PrimaLoft RISE fill is a soft and lofty ultra-fine synthetic fibre that keeps you…

THE FALLS OF GLOMACH is one of the most spectacular places in Scotland, and arguably the UK’s most impressive waterfall. A tumbling river in a gentle glen roars over a massive drop, falling 113 metres into a deep canyon below. Glòmach means ‘hazy’ or ‘gloomy’ in Gaelic, and describes the spray that can rise far into the air from the waterfall. The description feels fitting, especially on a grey day in the Highlands. This is a wild and remote location, and there is perhaps no other commonly visited waterfall in the UK that requires so much effort to reach. This route, via Glen Elchaig, is very straightforward until the final 1.5km, where things become a lot more serious. A rough path takes you into the confines of the Allt a’ Ghlomaich,…

BOW FELL PRESENTS an imposing face to every point of the compass. With a pivotal position at the hub of Lakeland’s watersheds, Bow Fell’s rains are scattered as far afield as Carlisle, Ravenglass and Ulverston. It is most often seen, and admired, from Langdale – and this is our approach today, but by a slightly circuitous route. Yes, you could blast up to the summit via the well-graded steps of The Band, but our way weaves around the direct route, taking some mysterious detours with discovery around each corner. ‘Not all who meander are lost’ should be your mantra for today, with an ascent zig-zagging into the jungly dell of Oxendale, escaping via the miniature canyon of Hell Gill, skirting the devious Climbers’ Traverse and finally padding up the uniquely…

THE CHUNK OF HIGH GROUND between Machynlleth and Llanidloes remains largely off-the-beaten-track. Empty hills and panoramic skies are the order of the day, and you’ll see plenty of these on the mountain road that links the two towns. And, halfway between them, the isolated former lead mining village of Dylife – once a place of toil and turmoil, but now hardly a hamlet – is the starting point for a great looped walk above and around the deep valley of meandering Afon Twymyn. This unexpected chasm, forged by glacial meltwater, is hemmed by steep escarpments, from where swathes of grey scree tumble into classic clumps of oak woodland. The promontory below the windswept moors of Creigiau Pennant resembles the mighty prow of an ancient galleon and the scenery is equal…